By Celia Wren
Special to The Washington Post
Thursday, July 19, 2007

A piano-playing gorilla in a gold tuxedo. A shower of rubber spiders. Those might not represent typical lessons in theater history, yet they're exactly that in "Hellzapoppin," the American Century Theater's antic reconstruction of Ole Olsen and Chic Johnson's celebrated 1938 revue.

Shaky acting keeps this production from fulfilling its comic potential, but director Jack Marshall and his performers provide a fascinating glimpse into the showbiz past.

Olsen and Johnson were vaudeville veterans who, in the aftermath of that medium's demise, brought their anarchic humor to Broadway. The smash hit "Hellzapoppin" was a smorgasbord of explode-the-fourth-wall nuttiness: sight gags; comedy songs; skits abandoned partway through; cameos by audience stooges; an absurdist raffle; and in a trademark stunt, a man who wandered through the theater hawking an ever-larger potted tree. Given a substantial PR boost by powerful admirer Walter Winchell, the show played for 1,404 performances.

Since Olsen and Johnson were improvisers, and since the "Hellzapoppin" lineup changed considerably during its run, re-creating it has been no simple task (a 1977 revival designed as a vehicle for Jerry Lewis was a notorious debacle).

To prepare for this production, Marshall, also American Century's artistic director, and his colleagues spent a year in research that included tracking down the single surviving "Hellzapoppin" script and interviewing individuals who'd seen the original run. The team jettisoned hopelessly dated material and substituted jokes from Olsen-and-Johnson movies, as well as classic vaudeville routines, novelty songs and buffoonery that's the 2007 equivalent of Depression-era yuks.

Back in 1938, for instance, "Hellzapoppin" featured a scalper who sold an audience member (in reality, a stooge) a ticket to Rodgers and Hart's "I Married an Angel," allowing the relieved purchaser to scurry off to superior entertainment. On opening weekend in 21st-century Arlington, the scalper's ticket was to "The Witches of Eastwick."

The production is chockablock with such cheerful silliness, presided over by Olsen (Bill Karukas) and Johnson (Doug Krenzlin), wearing suits and fedoras. An escape artist, the great Howdiddi, proves to be incompetent. A balloon vendor shows up for no discernible reason, as do several people claiming to be Spartacus. Courtroom sketches make atrocious puns. Once or twice, the shtick gets edgier, as when a felon in striped prison garb leads a song about K Street lobbyists.

It's pleasantly goofy stuff, good for a chuckle now and again, and it would probably be delightful in the hands of adroit actors. Unfortunately, with the exception of Karukas -- who deadpans hilariously -- this production's 26-person cast lacks the kind of stage presence and comic timing the material requires. Krenzlin seems ill at ease, as does Brian Crane, who portrays Olsen and Johnson's harried producer. Those in smaller roles, including the female performers who sometimes double as members of a chorus line, display more enthusiasm than ability.

On a more positive note, sound designer Matt Otto whips up all the crashing, shattering, falling-down-the-stairs noises the tomfoolery requires. Rip Claassen's costumes (including silky gowns, fishnet stockings and feather headdresses for the chorus) and Mike Switalski's simple set (basically a wall with a door that admits all sorts of surprises) are adequately suggestive.

Although the production falls short of the mark as a piece of entertainment, it's an admirable piece of theater scholarship. If you loved "The Muppet Show," "Blazing Saddles" and the "Naked Gun" movies and are curious where such inspired goofiness came from, "Hellzapoppin" offers you a chance to find out.

Hellzapoppin, based on the concept and book by Ole Olsen and Chic Johnson. Directed by Jack Marshall; musical direction by Thomas D. Fuller; choreography, Kay Casstevens; lighting, Marc Wright; props, Eleanor Gomberg. About 2 hours 20 minutes. Through Aug. 18 at Gunston Arts Center, 2700 S. Lang St., Arlington. Call 703-553-8782 or visit http://www.americancentury.org.